Matcham

2016

In the past, ornamental trees had been planted throughout the property with little thought to composition or relevance. Decades of growth had left the garden feeling congested.

This urge to “civilise” the landscape through ornamental planting as a psychological buffer to the natural environment is a deep seated one but we felt it was important to strip away this thinking and reveal the inherent beauty of the Turpentine’s, Eucalypts and Cabbage Palms of the native forest.

We then laid out a series of courtyards connected to the house and pool that facilitate a direct connection to the natural environment.

Indigo Slam

2016

The garden at Indigo Slam is conceptual in its genesis. The idea that two trees sculpted through time to create one was an intuitive response from my first site visit.

Aware that this building will grow in importance to the fabric of Sydney over generations, the concept focused around the feeling that the trees should accompany the building as companions through time, a living connection to its beginning.

Several species were considered but it was evident that the species with the longevity, beauty and hardiness to survive this journey through time would be Ginkgo biloba.

Regent Street

2016

Deceptively simple in appearance this little garden presented a set of technical challenges that needed to be considered carefully.

We are living through an exciting time for landscape practitioners, with a genuine drive from the community, councils and other stakeholders to increase our access to green wherever possible. In our heavily built cities this presents technical challenges from a horticultural perspective – how do you create successful green spaces without access to a natural soil profile – in planter boxes, on slab and vault structures?

This garden is built over a garage that cleverly multiplies the useable space for this young family. Some of the planter boxes are very narrow, reducing soil volume and the lawn is on slab. The garden also has a westerly aspect; so long summer afternoons place a lot of pressure on the plant life within the built structure.

Tread Lightly

2016

The aim of this show garden was to create a sense of place and the illusion of an established garden in what was a temporary installation.

A second but no less important goal was to recycle every construction element, as show gardening is well known as a wasteful sector of the industry. Every component in this design was returned to suppliers or used in actual projects after the event.

Enquire

Our Practice

Christopher Owen Landscape Design is a studio practice dedicated to thoughtful, evocative responses to varying landscape challenges. We approach our projects with an open mind to all stakeholders be they client, architect, civil authorities and the craftspeople who construct and maintain them.

We study site carefully, reading and synthesizing the cultural and ecological conditions at play and fuse this data with intuition, creativity and practicality. Adept at working to any scale from vast acreage to intimate city gardens, our process is always the same – We listen, study and respond.

Christopher OwenHorticulturist and Principal Designer

Christopher is a qualified horticulturist with over twenty years of diverse experience in the field. The bulk of this experience has come through, on the ground, installation and maintenance of landscapes throughout Sydney from rural and high-end residential to multi-residential and commercial projects. As a result, this high level of technical experience and education underpins every step of the design process.

Beyond this, Christopher believes the key to successful landscape interventions is through a deep understanding and affinity with the elusive qualities of landscape, the play of light, the tectonic clarity of space, movement, employing materials with integrity, and the ability to tap into and foster a sense of place.

Erica RoweLandscape Designer

Erica studied a Bachelor of Design at UNSW COFA and Diploma of Sustainable Landscape Design at Swinburne University.

In a former life Erica worked for a leading fashion label where she developed an affinity for colour, texture, line and form. Erica now has several years experience in the landscape industry and has transferred her insight and understanding of these universal principals of design to landscape. Erica is responsible for the day-to-day operation and scheduling of our studio and is involved with every project at a creative and technical level.

Javiera OrtizLandscape Architect

Javiera has recently completed a Bachelor of Architecture and Masters in Landscape Architecture at the Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile and brings her extensive education and natural creativity to our studio. Javiera is a project designer responsible for documenting many of our landscapes.